Europe’s Second Tallest Tower Nears Completion

Złota 44, a Polish landmark set to become Europe’s second tallest building, is only six months away from completion.

Located in the centre of Warsaw, the striking skyscraper will rise 192 metres with a contemporary design set to revitalise high-rise living in the heart of the city.

Złota 44’s design, by renowned Polish-born architect Daniel Libeskind, showcases a distinctive sail shape that was inspired by Warsaw’s history and serves as a response to its destruction and post-war Russian reconstruction.

While the building is aesthetically contemporary with a glass and steel structure, its fluid architectural shape moves away from conventional skyscrapers in hopes of attracting a new type of resident and promoting a new urban way of living.

Arup, which is supervising the final stage of construction, also provided structural, mechanical, electrical and public health engineering design works for the project. The firm is working hard to complete the tower before the end of the year.

"We feel very proud for being given a chance to work on such fantastic building with world class architect,” said Arup project director Andrzej Sitko. “All our services have been delivered to full client’s satisfaction. Building, once completed, together with Złote Tarasy, will be an evidence of Arup skills, knowledge and strong presence on difficult Warsaw market."

Złota 44’s facade is perhaps its most impressive feature, with a modular aesthetic and thermal credentials as directed by the building's developers Orco Property Group. Orco is committed to delivering a well-designed sustainable building to the Polish property market.

The facade is made up of modular triple glazed insulating glass units with each panel assembled off-site in a prefabricated framework for precision and quality assurance.

The glazing is actually a special solar control coating applied to the glass units which extensively reduces thermal energy transfer in and out of the building, helping Złota 44’s reduce its carbon dioxide emissions. The high performance facade has also been designed to withstand extreme weather conditions, will be air and water tight and will provide superior acoustic insulation.

Orco Property Group took sustainable creditation one step further by ensuring the building's design and predictted structural durability was authenticated in specialist laboratories in the US – the first high rise building in Poland to test its façade according to this benchmark.

Arup said energy management, materials and the consideration of recycling have also been incorporated into the natural design.

"The physical, technical and planning issues had been considered to ensure the adequate interface with the surroundings whilst providing high quality conditions in the building," said Arup project manager Maciej Lewonowski. "The development also ensures the blending relationship with the existing high-rise buildings in the vicinity whilst maintaining its unique character as the first residential tower in Poland."

The building brings new light to the city both physically and symbolically with its eastern face sculpted by the path of the sun to provide needed daylight to the surrounding buildings according to Libeskind's project brief for the skyscraper.

"I am delighted that the steel structure of Złota 44 tower has been realised. the tower advancing construction is now changing the skyline of Warsaw," Libeskind said earlier this year. "Beside the importance of building a tower in my native country, I am proud Warsaw has the highest exclusively residential tower in the whole European Union. The tower completion will take place soon and I am looking forward to being in Warsaw for the opening."

The luxury building will feature 54 floors with 251 apartments located from the ninth floor through to the top of the tower. The building will also house 30 luxury units including two triplex penthouses on the top floor, while the lower levels will be dedicated to recreation, retail and car parking areas. Residents will also enjoy other amenities including a 25-metre indoor swimming pool, sauna and spa.

The building has already been recognised for its remarkable design. In 2009, Złota 44 was awarded CNBC Europe & Africa Property Awards in four categories: Architecture, Redevelopment, High- Rise Architecture and High-Rise Development.

The building was also recently awarded the European Medal, a Polish nationwide initiative undertaken by the European Economic and Social Committee in Brussels, the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and private entrepreneurs association the Business Centre Club. The medal recognises outstanding products that meet European standards.

Złota 44 is set to officially open at the turn of 2013.

In other curvaceous projects, Libeskind is exercising a similar design ambition for his collaboration with starchitect Zaha Hadid and Arata Isozaki for a masterplan called CityLife in Milan, Italy. A series of three skyscrapers - one by each architect - will be developed in the historic area with Torre Libeskind (Il Curvo, The Curved One), being Libeskind's project.

Torre Libeskind is currently under construction and is set to rise 150 metres, offering 30 floors of mixed commercial and residential space. The tower is scheduled for completion by 2015 and will neighbour both Hadid's and Isozaki's towers for the project, with Isozaki's set to stand as the tallest building in Italy upon completion at 202 metres.